This handgun was detected by a TSA officer in a traveler’s carry-on bag at Erie International Airport on Dec. 9. (TSA photo)
ERIE, Pa. – A Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officer at Erie International Airport (ERI) prevented a local resident from bringing a loaded handgun onto his flight on Friday, Dec. 9. The .380 caliber handgun was packed alongside a gun magazine loaded with seven bullets. It was the first gun detected by TSA officers at the airport’s checkpoint this year.
The gun was detected via the X-ray machine as the man, a resident of Erie, Pa., was entering the security checkpoint with his carry-on items. TSA officials notified the airport police who confiscated the gun. The man also faces a stiff federal financial civil penalty that could cost him thousands of dollars.
“This was a good catch on the part of our officers,” said Karen Keys-Turner, TSA’s Federal Security Director for 14 Pennsylvania airports, including Erie. “It is the responsibility of all travelers to know the contents of their baggage and know that they cannot carry a firearm through a security checkpoint."
Passengers are permitted to travel with firearms only in checked baggage if they are properly packaged and declared at their airline ticket counter. TSA has details on how to properly travel with a firearm posted on its website.
Bringing a gun to an airport checkpoint carries a federal civil penalty with weapons violations reaching as high as $15,000, because TSA reserves the right to issue a civil penalty to travelers who have guns and gun parts with them at a checkpoint. Civil penalties for bringing a handgun into a checkpoint can stretch into thousands of dollars, depending on mitigating circumstances. This applies to travelers with or without concealed gun carry permits because even though an individual may have a concealed carry permit, it does not allow for a firearm to be carried onto an airplane. The complete list of civil penalties is posted online. Additionally, if a traveler with a gun is a member of TSA PreCheck®, that individual may lose their TSA PreCheck privileges.
Firearm possession laws vary by state and locality and passengers should do their homework to make sure that they are not violating any local firearm laws. Travelers should also contact their airline as they may have additional requirements for traveling with firearms and ammunition.
Nationwide, TSA officers detected 5,972 firearms on passengers or their carry-on bags at checkpoints last year. Of the guns caught by TSA in 2021, about 86 percent were loaded.